Tiny Smart car makes a big impression

As Earth Day 2008 dawned today, Pookie Tully of Kalispell planned to hit the road in a car with a three-cylinder, one-liter engine with the highest miles-per-gallon rating of any gasoline-powered vehicle as rated by www.fueleconomy.gov.

According to Tully, her new French-built Smart car provides more than relief at the gas pump.

"It's a kick in the pants to drive," she said with a smile.

Although hybrid vehicles get better gas mileage then her car's 33 mpg city and 41 on the highway, Tully points out that the Smart's base price of about $11,000 makes more economic sense than most hybrids.

She sees herself as reflecting a new, more minimalist attitude in transportation.

"For me, it is a breaking away of our obsession with cars twice the size we need," she said. "We have to scale down."

As a trim single woman, Tully finds the two-seat Smart car a perfect fit for herself and her pet chihuahua. But at 5.1 feet high, the vehicle has enough headroom to accommodate almost anyone.

The back opens up to reach storage space or provide seating for an impromptu party.

"It's got the cutest little tailgate," she said.

Measuring just 8.8 feet long and 5.1 feet wide, the micro Smart car makes a macro impression as Tully drives around town.

"I had one gentleman follow me to the post office," she said.

Strangers regularly flag her down to find out about her tiny pod of a car. Even a state trooper waved her down to get the skinny on the super mini.

Tully understands their reaction - it's the same one she had in 2002 when she saw dozens of Smart cars effortlessly darting around Paris and parking by backing into the curb.

"I was intrigued with them," she said.

She followed them for a few years on the Internet as she piled up miles on her 1991 Honda CRX. Then, in 2006, word came that the Smart car was coming to the United States.

On a whim, Tully put down the $99 reservation fee.

She got a confirmation in 2007, asking her to choose the basic pure coupe, the middle-of-the-line Passion coupe or high-end convertible Passion Cabriolet.

She ordered the Passion coupe, adding leather heated seats to the included amenities of a five-speed automatic transmission, air conditioning/climate control, power windows, panorama roof, alloy wheels, electric and heated side mirrors, radio with CD player and more.

"It was a gamble," she admitted. "I had to go with 800,000 sold across 36 countries and six continents - not that many people have been duped."

With the transportation added in, Tully paid just over $15,000 for her new car. She waited more than a year before getting word that her car was one of the first 20,000 shipped from France to the United States.

In late March, Tully had arranged to have her car shipped to the Flathead from Salt Lake City.

"I was apprehensive," she said. "But I figured with a 16- to 18- month waiting list, I could sell it if I hated it."

Tully hasn't quit smiling since the huge car transport carrier rolled into a parking lot bearing just two of the tiny Smart cars. One was her new black-and-white Passion coupe; the other was a black-and-yellow car bound for Billings.

She wasn't sorry that the yellow-and-black number was leaving on the transport.

"It looked like an enormous bumblebee," Tully said with laugh.

Her heart was beating double-time as she got behind the wheel of the new car. She had only test-driven a model once at a car exhibition in Portland.

"I got in it and I thought, 'What have I done - I know nothing about all this,'" she recalled.

As the scent of new leather lifted her to a higher plane, Tully turned the key and took off. She wasn't disappointed in the performance - the car goes from 0 to 60 mph in 12 seconds.

"Top speed is 90, but you won't find me doing that," Tully said.

She uses her Smart car to commute just a few miles to her job as a paralegal. Demand continues from friends and family for rides.

Most people ask first about the mileage and next about the safety of the small car. She refers them to the Smart Web site.

The Smart car has doors designed for easy access during rescue and four airbags for front and side safety. Other Web sites offer videos of safety tests that show the Smart car cell remaining intact after high-speed crashes.

Tully has learned the tricks of operation, such as downshifting to scoot quickly up hills. She hasn't driven on ice and snow, but hears encouraging reports from the drivers of about four other Smart cars in the valley.

"A lady in Whitefish had one all winter," Tully said.

The car comes with an electronic stability program with traction control, cornering brake control, anti-lock brakes, electronic brake distribution and brake assist. Tully said the car feels stable and requires little time to learn to drive.

"It really does remind you of a European-style car," she said. "It has a simplicity to it."

She bought an extended five-year or 60,000 mile warranty. Tully expects local import repair businesses can handle service work or repairs.

People still have the option of reserving a Smart car on the Web site for delivery through Smart USA. Tully said that she understands that the car won't appeal to everyone.

"Not everyone thinks it's cute and not everyone thinks it's smart," she said. "But I just wanted something I could get around in that gets good gas mileage."

She also gets a good feeling about putting her ideals into action.

Tully said she had hoped to make an earth-friendly point with her license plate, but the state license-plate system blocked her first choice as too explicit.

She e-mailed the governor's office asking for special consideration.

"I wanted to make my political statement with 'SIZMTRS,'" Tully said with a laugh.

Reporter Candace Chase may be reached at 758-4436 or by e-mail at cchase@dailyinterlake.com